Latest news with #BedequeBay
CBC
15-05-2025
- Health
- CBC
P.E.I. hatchery says it's produced 1st MSX-resistant oyster seed in Canada
Social Sharing A hatchery in western Prince Edward Island says it has produced the first batch of MSX-resistant oyster seed in the country, but at least one expert says it's still too early to determine those results. The Bideford Shellfish Hatchery is located in the heart of P.E.I.'s wild oyster production region, which has been hit hard by the parasite. Multinuclear sphere X, or MSX, is harmless to humans but can be deadly to oysters. Since it was first detected in Island waters in July 2024, it has devastated stocks in some areas, including the famed Bedeque Bay. The Bideford hatchery's new batch of seed — essentially young oyster larvae that are used to start new beds or reefs — have a connection to Bedeque Bay. It's one of the places where oysters were collected for the hatchery's breeding program. Guy Perry, a geneticist and the hatchery's manager, calls the seed "survivors" — and the theory is that they are the best hope for producing MSX-resistant oysters. "Our expectation is they should have the most resistance of any [oysters] on the Island, or even in Atlantic Canada," Perry said. "Essentially, the sites we picked them from have the most infected status of any of the sites currently in Bedeque Bay." WATCH | Experts urge caution, but P.E.I. hatchery hopeful for MSX-resistant oyster seed: Experts urge caution, but P.E.I. hatchery hopeful for MSX-resistant oyster seed 23 minutes ago Duration 2:36 Perry said he's basing resistance on the oysters' projected rate of survival, which he estimates to be in the 70 per cent range for the hatchery's new seed. The Bideford breeding program is the same type of system used on the Eastern Seaboard of the United States after MSX was discovered there decades ago. Perry said seed in that area have shown 89 per cent resistance. "Chesapeake Bay, Virginia, Long Island Sound, they all went exactly the same way where they took survivors of outbreaks and bred them into the system to produce a stock line." There is a lot more infrastructure, a lot more labour that is required to produce an MSX-resistant seed. The hatchery is located in the Bideford River Marine Centre. It was originally a federal government research station focused on the oyster industry before it was transferred to the Lennox Island Development Corporation in 2014. It relaunched it as a hatchery a few years later. Adrian Desbarats is an aquaculture business development advisor with Ulnooweg, a not-for-profit that supports Indigenous fisheries initiatives. He's been an adviser to the Bideford hatchery since 2015. Desbarats said the hatchery will produce about 25 million oyster seed this year, with plans to increase production to around 90 million over the next few years. After that, he said the breeding program will probably need more support from the provincial and federal governments to further ramp up its production. "There is a lot more infrastructure, a lot more labour that is required to produce an MSX-resistant seed," Desbarats said. "If we could get some recognition of that and support to help us achieve that MSX-resistant seed to get it out to the industry, that would be very helpful." According to the P.E.I. Shellfish Association, there were 72 million oysters sold on P.E.I. in 2023. 'Wait-and-see' approach The Bideford breeding program has been attracting attention, including from scientists in Atlantic Canada who study oysters. Eric Ignatz, a post doctoral fellow in the marine affairs program at Dalhousie University in Halifax, said if the Bideford hatchery can prove the seed is MSX-resistant, that would be a first in the country. But that can be tricky, he said, because there is so little known about the parasite and how it's spread, especially in Canada. Ignatz will be doing research on MSX this summer in Cape Breton and on Prince Edward Island. "I would view the field work components as kind of a critical first step to identify oysters in natural beds or on farms that would have been exposed to MSX over the past year, breeding those oysters that you at least suspect are resistant or tolerant," he said. "It's hard to tell whether oysters that you're spawning this year are going to be resistant or tolerant to MSX." Bob MacLeod, president of the P.E.I. Shellfish Association, said they're taking a "wait-and-see" approach to the results from the Bideford seed, and what kind of MSX resistance they have. The association is also taking some action of its own. It's had an enhancement program that grows oysters to be released back in the wild to replenish the stocks for years now. Staff are also adding a nursery, and are hoping to purchase some of the seed from the Bideford hatchery to study how to grow it. Perry is hopeful the Bideford program will be successful. "It's a fair degree of pressure, it's a deep sense of responsibility to the community," he said. "There's a lot of people that are very, very afraid right now. And I hate to see that. I really do. We're doing the absolute best we can, as fast as we can to deal with the problem." The hatchery has buyers for about half of the 25 million seed it's produced this year, and the rest will be sold on a first-come, first-served basis.
CTV News
12-05-2025
- Health
- CTV News
P.E.I. fisherman says MSX parasite impact on oysters ‘devastating,' calls for government support
A parasite discovered in Canadian waters is causing destruction to oysters in P.E.I. Sarah Plowman reports. In Bedeque Bay, the backbone of P.E.I.'s spring oyster fishing industry, most oysters are dead. Normally, there would be thousands of oysters there, said Bob MacLeod, president of PEI Shellfish Association. But a recent, nearly three hour survey of the area by fishermen and the province found only thirty live oysters. 'Basically, it's wiped out,' said Macleod. 'It's devastating.' It was in Bedeque Bay where the parasite multinucleate sphere unknown, known as MSX, was first detected in July 2024. MSX is harmless to people and poses no risk to human health but it's deadly for oysters, with a high mortality rate. Macleod approximated that 10,000-12,000 boxes of oysters would've been fished out of the Bedeque area last year. Trouble in those waters has sent the 70 fishermen who'd typically be there daily, elsewhere. Bedeque Bay It was in Bedeque Bay where the parasite MSX was first detected in July 2024. 'It's putting an awful lot of pressure on other little rivers,' he said, noting he's heard of one spot that usually only has seven or eight dories, but last week had thirty. 'Come June, I'm fearful for what they're going to be fishing.' MSX is now widespread across P.E.I. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency says scientific evidence has shown it's already present or highly likely to be present in most marine waterways across the province. 'With the spring oyster fishery now reopening, we're beginning to see firsthand the impacts, such as high oyster mortalities,' the agency said in a statement. Oysters are a vital part of the province's economy and tourism. Zack Bell, P.E.I.'s Minister of Fisheries, Sport, Tourism and Culture, said in 2023, the industry generated about $24 million with a $47.5 million economic value for the province. Bell said Bedeque Bay area is probably the hardest hit spot but he's hearing reports from Percival River and Lennox channel. 'There are some areas where there is very little prevalence. But it is pretty much island wide,' said Bell. Some oyster farms hit too In Bideford, P.E.I., the Hardy family is dealing with more than a million dead oysters due to MSX and they expect to find more. Gordon Hardy and his family have dumped them out onto a long driveway that's currently coated with dead oysters. 'It's pretty devastating. We've been trying to pick all the dead ones out and keep the alive ones,' said Bradley Hardy, Gordon's son who's been helping his dad but also has his own dead oysters to sort through. Gordon said he has 200 lines of oysters at his farm and despite finding an estimated 1.2 million dead oysters in the past week, he's only sorted through about 15 per cent of what he grows. He estimates he's lost about $500,000 worth of oysters so far. 'The one's that I'm saving, I'm worried are they going to live or are they going to grow?' said Gordon. 'It's stressful. It's the future that I'm worried about.' Bradley wants to remind Canadians they can still eat P.E.I.'s oysters despite MSX, they just won't be able to grow as many. 'They're still just as good as they were. And they're safe to eat,' he said. Oysters The Hardy family dumped the oysters out onto a long driveway that's currently coated with dead oysters. Calls for more support from Ottawa Macleod said the situation is stressful for fishermen who need government support. 'The provincial government is trying to help us the best they can, but we need some federal support, really and truly. And that's something we're not getting,' said Macleod. 'This is no fault of any fishermen, what's happening here. This is a disease we have no control over. And our fishery is going down fast, and we're not really seeing anything in the form of help that we really need to get us through this.' In its latest budget, the P.E.I. government set aside $3 million for a contingency fund to support the industry. Minister Bell called it 'a start' 'It's also going to take a lot of help from our federal partners,' said Bell. 'Whether it's Service Canada or whether it's DFO, we will need some funding.' Bell explained that fishermen's EI is linked to their catch and not specific to their hours worked. 'So, I think that that's something that's going to have to be looked at, because unfortunately, some fishers are going out and they're not going to be able to get maybe the same catch as they had last year,' said Bell. CTV News reached out to Service Canada for comment but has yet to receive a response. A spokesperson with the Department of Fisheries and Oceans noted Ottawa has announced about a million dollars on research to determine how to resist MSX. It's unknown how the disease spreads but has long existed in the U.S.' East Coast where disease-resistant breeding has helped that industry adapt and now thrive. 'I think the immediate solution is to try to get some animals, some seed, some resistant seed in production as quickly as possible,' said Ryan Carnegie, a professor with the Virginia Institute of Marine Science Professor and Batten School of William and Mary. Macleod said the PEI Shellfish Association has been approved to set up a nursery to grow MSX-resistant oyster seed and they're working to get it in place. He thinks P.E.I. needs more new hatcheries. 'We need hatcheries, and we need hatcheries bad,' Macleod said. Bell said the province does have a hatchery but said it might not be going at its capacity. 'But we are working with that hatchery. We also use a hatchery in New Brunswick that has supplied a lot of seed here to the province of P.E.I.. And again, we want to make sure that we do it right,' he said.
CTV News
12-05-2025
- Health
- CTV News
P.E.I. fisherman says MSX parasite impact on oysters ‘devastating,' calls for government support
A parasite discovered in Canadian waters is causing destruction to oysters in P.E.I. Sarah Plowman reports. In Bedeque Bay, the backbone of P.E.I.'s spring oyster fishing industry, most oysters are dead. Normally, there would be thousands of oysters there, said Bob MacLeod, president of PEI Shellfish Association. But a recent, nearly three hour survey of the area by fishermen and the province found only thirty live oysters. 'Basically, it's wiped out,' said Macleod. 'It's devastating.' It was in Bedeque Bay where the parasite multinucleate sphere unknown, known as MSX, was first detected in July 2024. MSX is harmless to people and poses no risk to human health but it's deadly for oysters, with a high mortality rate. Macleod approximated that 10,000-12,000 boxes of oysters would've been fished out of the Bedeque area last year. Trouble in those waters has sent the 70 fishermen who'd typically be there daily, elsewhere. Bedeque Bay It was in Bedeque Bay where the parasite MSX was first detected in July 2024. 'It's putting an awful lot of pressure on other little rivers,' he said, noting he's heard of one spot that usually only has seven or eight dories, but last week had thirty. 'Come June, I'm fearful for what they're going to be fishing.' MSX is now widespread across P.E.I. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency says scientific evidence has shown it's already present or highly likely to be present in most marine waterways across the province. 'With the spring oyster fishery now reopening, we're beginning to see firsthand the impacts, such as high oyster mortalities,' the agency said in a statement. Oysters are a vital part of the province's economy and tourism. Zack Bell, P.E.I.'s Minister of Fisheries, Sport, Tourism and Culture, said in 2023, the industry generated about $24 million with a $47.5 million economic value for the province. Bell said Bedeque Bay area is probably the hardest hit spot but he's hearing reports from Percival River and Lennox channel. 'There are some areas where there is very little prevalence. But it is pretty much island wide,' said Bell. Some oyster farms hit too In Bideford, P.E.I., the Hardy family is dealing with more than a million dead oysters due to MSX and they expect to find more. Gordon Hardy and his family have dumped them out onto a long driveway that's currently coated with dead oysters. 'It's pretty devastating. We've been trying to pick all the dead ones out and keep the alive ones,' said Bradley Hardy, Gordon's son who's been helping his dad but also has his own dead oysters to sort through. Gordon said he has 200 lines of oysters at his farm and despite finding an estimated 1.2 million dead oysters in the past week, he's only sorted through about 15 per cent of what he grows. He estimates he's lost about $500,000 worth of oysters so far. 'The one's that I'm saving, I'm worried are they going to live or are they going to grow?' said Gordon. 'It's stressful. It's the future that I'm worried about.' Bradley wants to remind Canadians they can still eat P.E.I.'s oysters despite MSX, they just won't be able to grow as many. 'They're still just as good as they were. And they're safe to eat,' he said. Oysters The Hardy family dumped the oysters out onto a long driveway that's currently coated with dead oysters. Calls for more support from Ottawa Macleod said the situation is stressful for fishermen who need government support. 'The provincial government is trying to help us the best they can, but we need some federal support, really and truly. And that's something we're not getting,' said Macleod. 'This is no fault of any fishermen, what's happening here. This is a disease we have no control over. And our fishery is going down fast, and we're not really seeing anything in the form of help that we really need to get us through this.' In its latest budget, the P.E.I. government set aside $3 million for a contingency fund to support the industry. Minister Bell called it 'a start' 'It's also going to take a lot of help from our federal partners,' said Bell. 'Whether it's Service Canada or whether it's DFO, we will need some funding.' Bell explained that fishermen's EI is linked to their catch and not specific to their hours worked. 'So, I think that that's something that's going to have to be looked at, because unfortunately, some fishers are going out and they're not going to be able to get maybe the same catch as they had last year,' said Bell. CTV News reached out to Service Canada for comment but has yet to receive a response. A spokesperson with the Department of Fisheries and Oceans noted Ottawa has announced about a million dollars on research to determine how to resist MSX. It's unknown how the disease spreads but has long existed in the U.S.' East Coast where disease-resistant breeding has helped that industry adapt and now thrive. 'I think the immediate solution is to try to get some animals, some seed, some resistant seed in production as quickly as possible,' said Ryan Carnegie, a professor with the Virginia Institute of Marine Science Professor and Batten School of William and Mary. Macleod said the PEI Shellfish Association has been approved to set up a nursery to grow MSX-resistant oyster seed and they're working to get it in place. He thinks P.E.I. needs more new hatcheries. 'We need hatcheries, and we need hatcheries bad,' Macleod said. Bell said the province does have a hatchery but said it might not be going at its capacity. 'But we are working with that hatchery. We also use a hatchery in New Brunswick that has supplied a lot of seed here to the province of P.E.I.. And again, we want to make sure that we do it right,' he said.
